Star Wars: In the Heart of Darkness
by georgestark17
Summary: This exciting prequel to "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" answers many burning questions, such as, "How did Kylo Ren fall to the Dark Side?", "Where did Starkiller Base originate?", "Where did Luke Skywalker go wrong?", "What ever happened to that atrocity, Jar Jar Binks?", and more.
**A Story by Jeremy Lackey**

 **A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...**

 **STAR WARS: IN THE HEART OF DARKNESS**

 **Twenty years after the destruction of the Second Death Star, the NEW REPUBLIC is flourishing in an unprecedented fashion. As worlds are rebuilt, citizens of the galaxy are becoming ever-more confident in the ideal of lasting peace.**

 **Inspired by his heritage, Jedi Master Luke Skywalker has decided to create a new Jedi Order, so that the galaxy will once again possess its' greatest defense against the evils of the Dark Side.**

 **However, dark forces are working against Skywalker; a sinister organization known as the FIRST ORDER has come together, determined to destroy all that he has worked towards creating. Under a mysterious SUPREME LEADER, the First Order is desperate to get their clutches on one of Skywalker's most promising students...**

 **Prologue**

As the Resurgent-class Star Destroyer entered into orbit over the Twi'lek world of Ryloth, few denizens panicked; at least, not outwardly. Although the New Republic had declared the world "free" from Imperial presence more than ten years ago, the First Order had had a strong presence there since the very beginning. The Twi'lek adapted to it quickly; without the Free Ryloth Movement existent to motivate them, few citizens felt the urge to oppose such a menacing foe.

Not that the First Order had demanded much of the world; other than enlisting several thousand Twi'lek to build one large base and several smaller outposts in the nether regions of the planet, the Order seemed perfectly content to allow citizens to go mender on with their daily troubles and toils. The only special condition was that all Republic forces were to be kept away from the planet at all costs; the last thing that the still-infantile Order desired was to have the likes of Luke Skywalker and Lor San Tekka discovering the rate at which their forces were increasing; that, and discovering the location of their beloved Supreme Leader. That would endanger everything.

A Lambda-C class transport shuttle flew out of one of the Star Destroyer's several hangers, and flew at a steady rate towards Site D, one of what appeared to be one of the First Order's military outposts; at least, that is what it appeared to be at first glance. Few noticed the fact that every Stormtrooper stationed at the outpost seemed to be ever more alert than any other encountered on the planet; that constant air traffic, both coming and going from the base, had been a typical occurrence for over a month; that an all-around presence of evil seemed to emancipate from the base's central structure, affecting not only the troopers stationed there, but in all of the outlining structures as well.

"This is Shuttle TS-421, requesting permission to land on Platform 19," the shuttle's pilot said into the intercom. A few seconds later, a voice came back demanding him to send the proper code clearance. "Transmitting now," the pilot said, following all standard protocol needed in order to land. It had been stressed as to how important the meeting between his passenger and the Supreme Leader was, and he did not intend to encounter any difficulties that would earn him a position as some commander of an outpost in the Outer Rim. As soon as he was given clearance, the pilot set the craft down and lowered the entrance ramp.

Captain Phasma, leader of the First Order's increasing legions of Stormtroopers, descended the ramp, dressed in armor that was nearly identical to that of her underlings, with the exception that instead of it being the standard, dull white, it was clad entirely in chrome; many a person had perished by her blaster as they stared into her reflective armor, watched as their horrified expressions had lost all semblance of life as the face below the helmet remained as expressionless as the mask above. Phasma had not felt empathy in a great many years, and as she walked towards the heavily-guarded Palace of the Supreme Leader, she did not plan on doing so any time soon. The swiftness of the First Order had no time for inefficiencies such as empathy and other needless emotions; it had been those same emotions that had brought down the Galactic Empire, an organization that should have had the power to rule for a thousand years. She did not plan on allowing the First Order to suffer the same fate.

The Stormtroopers guarding the entrance to the Palace stepped aside as Captain Phasma approached; the doors opened immediately, not requiring codes for passage. Phasma continued into the building, heading towards the lift; no one even glanced in her direction as she did so. After arriving to the third underground level, she exited the lift and entered into a dark, cavernous room. Even with all of her suit's enhanced visualization sensors, she could not see much of anything clearly; the Force that was emitting the Darkness was well beyond such things as technology.

"Come forward," a cold, unseen voice said from the other side of the room. "Come," it repeated again, "I have been expecting you for a while now."

Captain Phasma walked forward towards the voice, her fear only a trickle in the back of her mind. As she reached the other side of the room, a throne became apparent to her, modest and unimpressive to her eyes, considering the figure seated within it. And what a figure that was.

Icy black eyes stared out at her from a head that could only be described as a nightmare; scars etched into the surface of Supreme Leader Snoke's yellowish-white skin, scars that told more dark and violent tales than a thousand HoloNovels ever could; his nose was slanted to one side, having once been broken and never set right; his small stature did not keep him from intimidating all those who stood before him. However, his disturbed looks did not come close in comparison to the feeling of evil that appeared to emit from every fiber of the Supreme Leader's being; the Dark Side had always been strong with Snoke, and only grew stronger when those who feared him entered before his presence.

Captain Phasma was one of a select few that did not outright fear Supreme Leader Snoke; that had been one of the underlying reasons as to why she had been given charge of commanding all of his fighting forces, and why he now admired her as she stood before him, concealing what little fear she had into the unknown depths of her mind. "Supreme Leader Snoke," she said, raising a salute to her superior.

Snoke raised a weathered and wrinkled hand and waved her off. "Enough of that, Captain Phasma. What news do you have of Skywalker and his attempt to reestablish the Jedi Temple on Coruscant?"

Phasma did not flinch before replying: "My sources have informed me that the New Republic is hesitant to allow Skywalker access to such a historical site, even though by all reasoning ownership of the Temple is rightfully his."

The Supreme Leader laughed lightly, a sound that sounded more animal than sentient being. "And indeed it is; a fool such as the Emperor should never have been allowed to reside in a building as in touch with the Force as the Temple. By my hand, I have seen the downfall of many Jedi; Skywalker is one of the most powerful that I have ever witnessed. To only harness his power…" And yet, as Snoke considered what had happened the last time Skywalker had been tempted to the Dark Side, he knew that it was not to be. "And what of his Padawans, then? There are what, now, twenty-five of them?"

"Thirty-two," Captain Phasma corrected. "Their ranks have been increasing ever since Skywalker decided to scour the galaxy for Force-sensitive adults. Most are around his own age, and of all species; as a matter of fact, the only real exception to that is Skywalker's nephew."

The Supreme Leader's smile was small but evident. "Ah, yes; young Ben Solo, firstborn of Leia and Han Solo; nephew of Luke Skywalker. I have had my spies keeping watch on him for a great many years, so I am quite familiar with his story. The boy is conflicted; he has all of the wit and charm of his father, yet appears to be besieged by the same doubts about the Jedi that his grandfather possessed. That is good; I could use that."

"May I ask how, Supreme Leader?" Captain Phasma asked. "The boy is under constant watch by not only both of his parents, but San Tekka as well. Our agents could not get anywhere near him without setting off all kinds of alarms."

Snoke's smile dimmed. "Do not worry; I have methods that shall ensure that young Solo is tempted by the Dark Side; once that occurs, little will be able to stop the boy from doing whatever is needed to reach me. You are dismissed, Captain; report back to Starkiller Base and await further orders."

Captain saluted and bowed before turning and exiting the chamber. She had feared that the Supreme Leader would be displeased by the growth of the Jedi Order; however, knowing that he was within striking distance of young Solo, she felt assured that the First Order was about to acquire its' greatest asset; soon the galaxy would be under the rule of the Dark Side once again.

 **Chapter One: Dreams**

Luke Skywalker stared at a reflection of himself in a jagged and broken mirror; the face that stared back at him appeared jagged and rough as well, a far cry from the face of a Tatooine farm boy that it had once been. And yet, it did not feel as if twenty-five years had passed since he had boarded the Millennium Falcon with the Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and Han Solo and been whisked off to destroy the first Death Star and, subsequently, become a Jedi Knight as well as the shining light of the galaxy. All of the things that had happened since then; the massive battle on Jakku, where nearly all of the remnants of the Empire had been defeated; the birth of his nephew, Ben Solo; the years-long liberation of Coruscant from heavily entrenched Imperials, none of which went down without a fight. He had been a participant in all of those events, and yet it all appeared to be little more than a dream in his mind.

Luke walked away from the mirror and stepped outside onto the balcony attached to his modest room and looked out into the skies of Coruscant; as always, an unceasing flow of air traffic moved in every direction possible, not caring that it was early morning by the planet's standards. It had taken him time to get used to it; during the Battle for Coruscant, the only air traffic had been that of X-Wings and TIE Fighters duking it out in-between buildings, and even then air skirmishes were infrequent and lasted only a few moments. With the assistance of Han Solo, Chewbacca, and many trained New Republic fighters, even the best of the Imperial fighter pilots stood little chance against the opposition that eventually overtook them. Luke's role had been that of commander, leading troops on, lightsaber always in hand, and cutting down Stormtroopers by the dozens. He, nor any of the others, had had to deal with much of Coruscant's civilian life at all.

Now, however, it appeared as if Luke could not get away from it; everywhere he looked, lights, noise, and speeders were always there to greet him with all of their infernal glory. Although he had long since grown with the Force to avoid senseless pleasures such as those, he could not help but worry as to what they were doing to his Jedi Padawans; he had re-located all of them to the ancient Jedi Temple on Coruscant, despite the numerous objections from many high-ranking members of the New Republic's bureaucracy. Although he had considered forming his Jedi Temple in other, more isolated Force-rich environments such as Dagobah or Yavin 4, he had eventually realized that the only option that would benefit not only his students but himself as well was to locate the Jedi in the same building that had housed millions of Jedi over thousands of years.

Luke reached out with the Force and located Leia and Han; they were both on Hosnian Prime, negotiating a deal that would bring two more Outer Rim systems into the New Republic's ever-growing alliance of star systems. He smiled a little at that thought; although he could easily see his sister doing diplomatic work without any trouble, it was hard to imagine smuggler-turned-general Han Solo peacefully negotiating a treaty before some suspicious committee. Those thoughts were all well and good, but he knew that he had other issues to be concerned about; his nephew, for instance. Ben Solo did not take the mantle of Jedi like any other person that Luke had ever seen.

Just earlier that day, Luke had been having the Padawans practice dueling with training sabers, getting them used to one-on-one fighting. Lor San Tekka, a man who had originally been a major non-Jedi Force user in the Clone Wars and who had later become Luke's companion and mentor, had been working with Ben and a female Bothan named Taheen Vaal on their starting positions, when Ben had acquired an odd look in his eyes. He had demanded to spar with San Tekka personally, a challenge that the older man had accepted with dignity. From what Luke had come to understand, it was typical for many Padawans to challenge their Masters at some point in their training; the key was to humble them and allow them to learn from their foolish mistakes. However, he had been surprised that Ben had done such a thing; up until that point, the youth had reminded Luke quite a bit of himself during the early days of his training.

Ben Solo and Lor San Tekka had stood around ten feet apart, sabers clipped onto their belts. San Tekka drew his first, revealing a brilliant orange blade that made many of the Jedi gasp in surprise; Ben reached into his robe and grabbed an item that definitely was not his normal training saber. As it came to life, a normal-length green blade emitted from the top of the hilt; however, two smaller green blades came out on both sides of the hilt, creating a guard unlike anything that Luke had ever seen. San Tekka's eyes widened, recognizing the modified lightsaber immediately for what it was. "An ancient lightsaber design, very ornate yet very uncertain." He motioned to Ben's lightsaber with his own. "Your blade; it flickers. I believe that your construction of that weapon was improper, as no properly functioning weapon should be doing that. You have much to learn, young one."

Ben's lip raised in what could only be described as a snarl and leapt up into the air towards San Tekka. The older man held off the younger's attack with ease, barely needing to raise his blade to defend himself. However, Ben continued to metrically slice at his opponent without mercy, striking without forethought and control; San Tekka soon found himself struggling to keep up with the younger man, and eventually motioned for Luke to come into the fight and assist him. Luke ignited his own green blade and joined the battle, quickly disarming his nephew and pinning him onto the ground at saber point.

"What was that, Ben?" Luke asked. "What did you think that you were doing?"

Ben stood up and shrugged. "I used the Force; that is what we're supposed to be learning about here, right?"

"Ben…" Luke paused. He often reminded himself of his final, dark confrontation with his father, where he had almost turned to the Dark Side and slaughtered his own father in cold blood. "You may have been using the Force, but it wasn't the Light Side that you were feeling out there. You must learn how to use it to your advantage, and to stop allowing emotions of the moment overtake the good that resides within you."

"Like that's ever stopped me before," Ben mumbled to himself before walking away from Luke and out of the room. Luke did not get it; the boy had all of his mother's elegance and charm, and possessed a decent amount of charm from his father as well. However, the recklessness that had always been prevalent in Han Solo seemed to have found its' way from father to son. And yet, there was something more to it… Luke remembered a conversation that he had had with Han and Leia over five years ago, after Ben had used the Force to nearly strangle a friend of his that had upset him; Han had claimed that Ben had inherited too much of his grandfather in him; at the time, both Luke and Leia had scoffed at the idea. Now, however, Luke was not so sure.

A series of beeps and whistles came from behind Luke, bringing him out of his thoughts. R2-D2 had rolled up unnoticed, and was informing Luke that Ben Solo had left a message for him on his comlink; based on the urgency of Artoo's beeps, he could tell that it was of an important nature. "Thanks, Artoo," Luke said, patting the droid's head as he walked back inside his apartment. Indeed, the red light on his comlink flashed on and off, signaling that someone had left a message. Luke sighed, already sensing what Ben's call was about; his dreams had started up once again.

…

 _It always started out in a hallway, a structure that appeared to stretch off on both sides into infinity. He walked slowly down one direction, not having any particular destination in mind; his footsteps echoed off of the walls, increasing the presence of his being. A series of doors appeared on his left side, each one engraved with a different number: 12, 19, and 99. He always entered Door 19, feeling that something beckoned him to do so. The room in which he entered was pitch black; the air humid; the Force giving him a sense of foreboding. In the far distance, he saw a dim red light illuminate two people standing on the bridge; one an old man, the other only a few years older than he himself was. There was a sense of sadness between the two of them; however, when the younger man ignited a red lightsaber and stabbed the older man through the chest, the result was always the same: he screamed out in horror and tried to run away, only to find that the door behind him had disappeared._

 _"Come," a voice said behind him, ominous and all-knowing. He walked forward cautiously, his cross-guard lightsaber in his hand and at the ready. The man who sat before him was withered with age and scarred, a monstrosity that he could hardly bear to look at. "You are horrified by my appearance, aren't you?" the being asked. It grinned. "Why look so horrified? Look at the ground; that is what you shall look like one day." He looked down. And then he screamed. Before him lay an older version of himself, his face scarred by a horrific burn. As he looked into his eyes, the dead body looked back up at him. And then it spoke._

…

Ben Solo awoke from his dream with a shriek, nearly falling out of his bed in the process. He hyperventilated in an attempt to calm himself; it never did any good. The dream had haunted him for more years than he cared to remember, the only variable being his own age. When he was little, he often went to his mother with the dreams, telling her of the "scary monster man" that he had believed to have been watching his every move. Leia had always comforted him with hugs and words of relief; and yet, at the age of nineteen, he could no longer afford to be comforted by such things as his mother's concern. Anyways, she was away at some meeting on Hosnian Prime, and most likely would not enjoy being bothered by such trivialities as bad dreams. As his father had once said, he needed to man up and face his fears, or they would consume him all the way through.

His father. Han Solo. Smuggler, wartime general, liberator of worlds, diplomat, and best friend to and brother-in-law to Luke Skywalker, the default Grand Master of the Jedi Order. Ben's emotions towards his father had always ranged from somewhere in between uncertainty and outright rage; although he knew that deep down he loved Han Solo, he could not stand the thought of him at times. The amount of times that his father had left he and Leia alone at home, chasing after various pursuits in the galaxy, had left him with an open hole in his heart. Luke had warned him of allowing emotions to take hold such as those that he held towards his father; they were often a direct path to the Dark Side. And as much rage that he sometimes felt, the last thing that Ben wished to do was to fall to the Dark Side; a fate that sinister and miserable would be a dark fate, indeed.

Ben got out of bed, grabbed his comlink from a nearby table, and left a message for his uncle. "Hey, Luke," he said, the sleep still penetrating his voice. "I've had another one. Same as all of the others. I'm going to head down to the meditation chambers, if you wish to reach me." He turned the comlink off and put on his brown Jedi robes, basking in the warmth in which it gave him. Although the robes were not as thick as he would have liked, they created a cozy barrier between his body and the chilly air of the Jedi Temple. He entered the dormitory hallway; with so few Jedi currently in training, Luke had spread his Padawan's living quarters all over the Temple, giving everyone apt room to spread their legs and be comfortable. The room of the only other Jedi residing in Ben's hall of dormitories, Jacob Omari, was silent; he slipped on by the room, taking care to be as silent as possible.

As Ben entered the main meditation chamber of the Jedi Temple, his breath was taken away by the beauty of it all; the massive windows that covered each of the room's four walls gave an excellent view of Coruscant at night, without any of the noises or smells that he regularly associated with the city. A large, sparkling fountain stood in the center of the room, its' never-ending trickle water disappearing out into the depths of the temple below. When He, Luke and the others had first entered the Temple, rooms such as these had been in disrepair; it had appeared as if Emperor Palpatine, in the act of turning the Temple into the Imperial Palace, had desecrated any positive signs that the Jedi had once walked the halls of the building. One of their first lessons had been in patience and focus through the Force, using their teamwork and combined manpower to restore the Temple to a fraction of its' former glory.

Ben sat down on one of the floor cushions and positioned himself in a cross-legged fashion, clearing his mind of all of his worries. As he listened to the trickle of the water, he once again felt in tune with the Force; it surrounded him, filling him up with the senses of life and his counterparts in the Temple. He felt ashamed for using such rage against Lor San Tekka earlier in the afternoon; he had let his negative feelings get the best of him once again, and it had almost cost him a lot in the process. The way Master Luke had looked at him in disappointment as he was leaving the dueling room… he was not sure if he could face a look such as that on his uncle's face ever again.

"You have a right to feel ashamed, Ben," a voice said behind him, causing him to jump out of his meditation in fright. Luke had come up behind him at some point, although he could not figure out when; he had not sensed his uncle in the Force at all.

"How long have you been standing there?" Ben asked, unnerved.

Luke gave a faint smile and shrugged. "About a half an hour, I guess. Time can really get away from you, can't it?"

Ben nodded as Luke sat down on a cushion next to him. Although his uncle was middle-aged, he could still see the same fire and vitality in his eyes that had allowed him to play such a major part in the Galactic Civil War. "Why do I keep having these dreams, Luke? Is it a vision? A warning?"

Luke's smile waned as he stared out the window at the early morning traffic, pondering his nephew's question. "Master Yoda once told me that the future is hard to foresee, as various events are always in motion that constantly change the outcome of what is to come." He paused. "The strange thing is this: usually, I have been able to see some semblance of events to come, even if they are sometimes vague. And yet, recently the future has been clouded; I don't know if this is my own doing, or someone else's. When I left to face my father at Bespin, he had clouded the future to the point to where not even Yoda could tell what was going to happen. I have a nagging suspicion that something, or someone similar might be doing such a thing now."

Ben's blood chilled; a figure who was powerful enough in the Dark Side of the Force to cloud the future existed? How could such a thing be? "But Luke, the Emperor died twenty years ago, and Anakin turned back to the Light Side; how could there be other Sith out there?"

Luke shook his head. "Ben, although the Jedi and the Sith are the two most famous groups of Force-users in the galaxy, there have been many others. It is possible that someone belonging to one of these groups has done this intentionally, with the goal of pulling off unknown intentions." Luke shook his head again. "You should meditate upon all of this; all of our fates might just be in the balance of this occurrence, and you appear to be the key to it all. Consider it." And, without another word, Luke left the meditation chambers.

Ben stood up and walked over to the window. Outside, he could see a couple of Rodians duking it out on a rooftop adjacent to the temple; although he felt an urge to go out there and break up the fight, he knew that he couldn't. He felt the urge to save the entire galaxy all at once, but did not have the ability to do so; this disturbed him to a degree that he did not care to ponder on. He thought of what all Luke had said to him; somewhere out there, in the farthest reaches of the galaxy, sat some being that was using the Dark Side to cloud his uncle's powers. And to do what, get to him? The very thought of it sickened him. "Wherever you are," Ben said to the Dark Side being out loud, "I'll find you. And when I do, Master Skywalker will never even get a chance to deal with you."

 **Chapter Two: Hosnian Prime**

Han Solo embraced his wife, Leia Organa Solo, as she walked out onto their hotel room balcony and stood beside him. The sky had been turning to dusk, and Han had stepped out for a breath of fresh air after the latest of Leia and his' many "heated discussions"; now, they had both cooled off. "I'm sorry, Leia," Han said softly into her ear. "Those things I said; you know that I didn't mean any of them, right?"

Leia pulled away from him slightly; there were tears in her eyes, but every other feature of her face appeared to be expressionless. "I know, but Han…" She paused. "We can't keep doing this. Each time we argue over some pointless thing that has to do with my job—"

" _Our_ job," Han corrected.

"Yes, our job. Every time that we argue like that, I feel as if it is pulling us apart, and… and I'm afraid that one of these times, you won't come back to me."

"Leia…" Han embraced his wife once again, holding her tight as if to fight any doubts that she might have had in her mind. "I swear to you, on my health and the _Falcon's_ safety, I will never leave you. I've traveled all over this galaxy in my years, and have never met a woman like you. Your attitude, your looks…" He smirked. "Your family heritage."

Leia smirked back at him. "You know, for a scoundrel, you sure do have a way with words."

"You know it," Han said before kissing her. However, that special embrace lasted only few moments before he felt the tap of a cold hand on his shoulder.

Han and Leia pulled away from one another, revealing their protocol droid, C-3PO, standing behind them in the doorway. "Excuse me, sir, but I am afraid that you have an incoming message from Lando Calrissian. He said that you really should answer it."

Han frowned. Whenever Lando called, it was never good news. "Thanks, Threepio; I don't know what I would ever do without you," he said sarcastically.

"If I may say so, sir, I believe that your life would be in ruins if not for me being here to assist you," Threepio said. Both Han and Leia laughed at the droid's comment. "Did I say something humorous?" Threepio wondered out loud.

Still grinning, the couple went inside their apartment, only to be face-to-face with a life-sized hologram of Lando Calrissian. Although the hologram showed few colors, Han could see that his friend had been graying around the edges of his hair at around the same speed that he and Leia had been. And yet, that did not keep his enthusiasm from running out to greet the man. "Lando! Old buddy, it is great to see you!"

Lando smiled. "And you, Han. Leia, you are looking as royal and majestic as ever."

"And you are just as charming as ever, Lando," Leia said with a grin.

"So, what do you need this time? A loan from the New Republic's treasury?" Han asked, still feeling sarcastic.

Lando shook his head. "No, no, it is not about money; well, not exactly…" His head lowered. "You see, I've stumbled onto this really great business opportunity on the moon of Endor, and I was wondering if you two would—"

"Endor?" Han said, his voice rising slightly. " _Endor_? You mean, that moon with all of those furry little Wookiee wannabees? _That_ Endor?"

Lando nodded, grinning from ear-to-ear. "Yes, you know the Endor that I'm talking about. And they're not 'Wookiee wannabees', they're Ewoks. Lovely little creatures, actually."

"Lovely my boot," Han muttered, looking down at his feet.

"Han!" Leia exclaimed, play-slapping his chest and nodding towards Lando's hologram.

"Its okay, Leia; Han made his views on the Ewoks pretty clear during that celebration that we had on Endor. At least, he did after enough brandy went into his system." He laughed. "But honestly, those little guys are really some of the most fascinating beings that I have ever seen! Everything that they have done with technology since the end of the War…"

"Lando? What do you mean, 'technology'? Where did the Ewoks get technology from?"

"Well, we didn't really help them clean up the mess that we made, now did we?" Lando asked back. "AT-ST's, AT-AT's, speeder bikes, TIE fighters, Imperial bases… we left all of that behind. And the Ewoks, in doing their thing, have made good use of it. Even better once I came along."

Leia's eyebrows raised. "Lando, what kind of business are you running on Endor?"

"Cross-engineering. The Ewoks have developed a real knack for taking apart Imperial technology, analyzing it, and turning it into items that do really great as consumer items. Picture it: 'Come tour the grasslands of Naboo in a refurbished AT-AT'. We already have a dozen investors, and with a little luck, we are aiming to acquire around twenty more."

"So, what do you want us to do there?" Han asked.

"Just a little oversight, that's all. Bring Chewie along, he loves the Ewoks! Plus, it could be like a little mini-vacation for the two of you. Give you a chance to stretch your legs, ease your mind of the worries of the Senate Chamber. C'mon, what do you have to lose?"

"We would love to, Lando," Leia said with a smile.

Han gave her a look. "Well… I guess…" he said.

"Great! Just be here in a couple of days, you're in no rush!" Lando said. His hologram faded from existence.

Han turned towards his wife. "Really? You had to accept his invitation, didn't you?"

Leia gave her husband a grave look. "Han, something's not right with all of this. Lando would never invite us to one of his operations for something as basic as oversight. No, there was something that he was not telling us just now.

Han thought about it for a moment, and then nodded. "You know, you're right," he said. "Well, I guess that we should get our things packed. Send messages off to Luke and the Chancellor, let 'em know where we're heading. Threepio!" Han shouted.

The droid appeared immediately. "Yes, Master Solo?"

"Track down Chewie for me, will you? If we're going to go back to this jungle of a planet, he's going to be tagging right along with us."

"Yes, sir!" the droid replied. And, after a moment's thought: "Sir, what planet shall we be travelling to? Yavin 4?"

Han laughed. "You wish. Endor."

"Oh, dear," the droid said, remembering his own time on the forest moon; being worshipped as a god had been odd then, and would be no less odd now.

"Just do it, will you?" Han said, growing impatient. The droid stalked off, beginning his search for the whereabouts of Chewbacca. "Now, where were we before all of this?" Han asked, embracing his wife once more. He kissed her again; this time, no man or droid interrupted their moment of passion.

…

C-3PO found Chewbacca down in the hotel's hanger, partaking in his favorite pastime; working more repairs and upgrades onto the most infamous ship in the galaxy, the _Millennium Falcon_. Currently, Chewbacca was installing a new transmitter dish onto the ship, which he believed would double the speed of any communications coming in or out of the ship. The droid looked up at the large, imposing Wookiee, who had not noticed him yet. "Chewbacca! Master Solo has informed me that we are returning to the moon of Endor!"

Chewbacca immediately looked up from what he was doing and let out a roar of pleasure. He jumped down from the ship carefully, and growled a question as to when they were traveling to the moon.

"Immediately, I believe," Threepio said.

Chewbacca's exuberant growls informed the droid as to how overjoyed the Wookiee was by the news. Chewie ran into the Falcon, and began pre-flight warmups without any urging of the droid.

"I never knew that a Wookiee could be that happy," Threepio said to himself as he walked off towards the apartment once again.

…

TIE fighters screamed over the surface of the planet that the First Order referred to only as Starkiller Base, passing over endless snow dunes and half-buried forests. In the distance, thousands upon thousands of soldiers worked constantly on the Base's superweapon, an item of such power that, when completed and in theory, would absorb enough dark matter from nearby stars to where it could cause distant systems to go supernova. Yet, the completion of the Starkiller Base Project still stood years away; for now, Captain Phasma, who stood in the command center of the Base, had more pressing matters on hand.

The newly appointed General Hux, son of the infamous general from the days of the Galactic Empire, stood next to her, observing the progress on the superweapon. "Magnificent, isn't it?" Hux asked. "The Empire had been planning this thing for years, yet they only ever got around to choosing this location for the spot. Now we, the First Order, are building what the Empire never could; we shall be the greatest power in the galaxy."

Captain Phasma imagined that the Supreme Leader would disagree with that statement, but chose not to speak it out loud. "Indeed it is."

General Hux turned to face her. "So, have the preparations been made on Endor?"

"Yes, sir. The traps have been set in place exactly as the Supreme Leader requested. Now all we must do is wait."

"Good, good," Hux said. "The Supreme Leader is quite assured with himself, isn't he? That separating the parents from the boy will make young Solo easier to influence?"

"I trust his judgement," Phasma said. "You should too. The boy is weak; he is confused about his own identity and where he fits into the spectrum of the galaxy. With a little urging, it will not be difficult for him to discover that fact for himself."

General Hux nodded. "I agree. Still, I just do not fully see the need for the Supreme Leader to bring another Force-sensitive into the mix here. By himself, it is only a matter of time before Skywalker and his Jedi are crawling up our backs and discovering what we are hiding."

Phasma laughed, cold and metallic. "Even if Skywalker were to discover us, he could never get the support of the Republic in confronting us. The politicians on Hosnian are so terrified by the memories of war that they will never even approach the thought of starting another. They are weak, and their weakness shall become our resolve."

"Indeed, Captain Phasma; consider the fact that right now, no force in the galaxy is willing to oppose us, no matter what we do. Invade a world here, enslave a race there, it doesn't matter. The Republic and the Confederate Union refuse to recognize what we are capable of, instead turning a blind eye to it all. That will be the death knoll of the Republic; their foolishness has become our greatest ally. And under the guidance of the Supreme Leader, not even Luke Skywalker and his Jedi Academy can stop us now."

 **Chapter Three: A Discovery**


End file.
